Dissident
by Ayla Whitlock
Summary: Catching her eyes across the crowded cafeteria, I couldn't help thinking back to where we had been several hours earlier. Her beneath me calling out my name with such a breathy moan... I gave her a lopsided grin, it growing wider as I could see her blush spreading across her cheeks. She looked away quickly and back up at her boyfriend. My step-brother. AH. JxB
1. Prologue

A/N: Very short prologue, I know. I hope to make these chapters way longer than in my other stories. :/ We'll see though. I have to stop when it feels right, and it felt right here.

Breathing her in, I wasn't sure how much longer this charade could last. She was mine. And I, hers. She was my step-brother's girlfriend. But she wanted me. It was my name she called out softly, voice filled with passion and want. I was the one who made her toes curl and her eyes unfocused with desire. I felt movement next to me as I wrote in my journal. Glancing over I saw her roll on her side, sighing my name quietly. The sheet barely covered the curvy expanse of her hips. I couldn't feel guilty. I had tried time and time again to disentangle her from my mind and loosen the grasp she had on my heart. It was a fruitless endeavor. I knew something had to give, I had to give her up or she had to give him up. I was doubtful however, that he would give her up. He claimed she was his muse, his best friend, the sole purpose for his existence. I knew better though. Bella once told me that before she met me it was as if she forgot how to breathe. Every day was spent gasping for breath, for control of her life. How she used to just go with the flow, follow the tides as they ebbed further away from who she was. Where she wanted to be.

I spent a few more moments staring at the expanse of her skin, before glancing at the clock on her bedside table. Shit, he would be here any minute. I hurriedly put on my boxers and gathered up my clothes in my hands, shoving my journal underneath her mattress. Giving her a quick kiss on the temple, I fled through the back door as my step-brother arrived to take his _beloved_ to school. I couldn't help thinking about the events that led me to getting dressed in the freezing cold Washington weather at seven am on an old hiking trail behind my step-brother's girlfriend's house... I wouldn't change them for anything in the world.


	2. Fuck Me Running

A/N: Wow, 18 alerts and 3 reviews? I am fuckin' flattered! I had thought that my short prologue was... well too short! The pressures on! I hope I don't disappoint.

Chapter One

"Washington is a fucking dump." My twin sister Rosalie sneered as she maneuvered her sports car into a parking spot at Forks High. I couldn't exactly say I disagreed with her. Coming from Houston it was a total culture shock. Our school didn't have more than 400 students. Our old one had over nine thousand.

"Look at it this way Rosie." I started, earning a glare from her at the name. "I'm sure you'll be the queen bee in no time at all." Her glare had turned into a sneer.

"Ugh."

"Just think, you could be the crème de la crème of this turd pile." Huffing she grabbed her stuff out of the back seat and slammed her car door. I couldn't help it, annoying the shit out of my sister was the high light of my day. I got out and waited a few minutes for her to make her grand entrance. Hopefully I could stay under the radar and no one would notice me. I slid my iPod out of my leather jacket's pocket and started to unwind my ear buds... It was too late however, I had already been spotted. Fuck.

"Hiiiiii! You must be one of the new kids!" Considering how small the school was I was sure she meant me and my sister. She had frizzy blonde hair and lipstick stuck to her teeth. I didn't bother giving her a second glance. I ignored her completely, turning away and continued to put in my ear buds. "Oh you have an iPod? I have one too!" She giggled and twirled her nasty hair around one of her fingers.

"Oh for fuck sakes..." I muttered mostly under my breath but I hoped it was still loud enough that she heard me.

"Jasper! What are you doing you silly boy!" A brunette sauntered up to me and grabbed my elbow, pulling me away from the vapid blonde. "Bye Lauren!" She winked at the frazzled blonde who I swear had literally just stamped her foot and huffed in frustration. Her hand had moved from my elbow to my hand and she was pulling me along the parking lot and through a bunch of stunned looking students. She was wearing dark wash denim cut offs that practically showcased her firm little ass. Her feet had on black cowboy boots that were obviously not the real thing. They made her legs look fuckawesome though. She had on a black shirt and I wondered if it was a band shirt. If I wasn't wearing a band shirt I wasn't wearing a shirt. Today I had chosen a Pearl Jam shirt. They were one of my all-time favorite bands. Her long blonde hair cascaded down her back in complete disarray. I wonder if she even bothered to brush it or if she spent hours perfecting this style. The former was definitely my kind of girl.

"And here you are, Whitlock." She said dropping my hand and spinning around to face me. Her wayfarer reading glasses slid down her nose as she spun and she pushed them back up quickly, meeting my eyes with her own. Her eyes were the richest shade of brown I had ever seen. I even saw flecks of auburn in them. She waited a few seconds, shifting from one foot to the other awkwardly. "Uh yeah, bye then." And with that she turned around and started walking away, her boots echoing through the hallway the further away she got.

"Wait!" I called out before I could stop myself. She paused and looked over her shoulder, pushing her glasses up again. "You know my name, but I don't know yours."

"Bella Swan." She rolled her eyes exaggeratedly and walked away. Fuck, like I was supposed to know.

"Stupid stuck up twats." I mumbled and walked into the building which I realized was the front office. The elderly lady behind the counter twittered about how adorable my accent was. Shit lady, I'm a third of your age if not more. I glanced at my schedule warily. They had shit for electives and I hope the few that I liked weren't snatched up by the time I sent in my requests. Homeroom and first period were in the same classroom. Awesome. Math though, pfft. I didn't need a Math class, I already had enough credits. I would have to get them to drop it for something else. Second period was Chemistry. Third period was Art. Fuck, art really? I could doodle though, I supposed. Fourth was History. I excelled in all things Historic. Lunch, then… are you shitting me. I looked at the name on the schedule. Jasper Whitlock. No mistake. I had been signed up for Dance. This shit was not going to fly. I bet anything Rosalie had signed us both up for it and was expecting me to be her partner. English rounded out my schedule. The school was small enough that I didn't even need the map I was given. At least it was indoors. I kept an eye out for the brunette and my blonde sister Rosalie. I probably could have looked around for my step-siblings, but why bother. They were without.

I got to my homeroom and breathed a sigh of relief when there were hardly any students there. I slumped in my seat and tried my best to look disinterested behind my wayfarer sunglasses. Letting my curly blonde hair fall in front of my face, I filtered through my iPod until I found a song I wanted to listen to. For some reason I was feeling some Van Morrison and Bob Dylan. I hit shuffle on my Van Dylan play list. I knew what it was before the first words were even spoken. The intro to Brown Eyed Girl was extremely noticeable. Especially when my mind kept drifting back to one girl in particular. How cliché of me. The room slowly filled with students, all of them excited for the new school year. I reluctantly pulled out my ear buds when the teacher stood in front of the class and I could hear students quiet down. It was then I noticed that a girl had sat next to me. She was currently leaning forward with her elbows on the table, one hand cupping her face holding her head up. Without even turning to look at me,

"What were you listening to?" I doubt she'd even know who Van Morrison and Bob Dylan were even if I told her. Although she did have on a band t-shirt, I just couldn't tell what it was from this angle, with all of her hair in the way.

"My Van Dylan play list." I decided to simplify it. She'd probably think that was a band or a single dude she hadn't heard of yet. Much better than having to explain that I listen to music from before we were both born.

"Yeah you seem like a Van Morrison and Bob Dylan fan." She replied turning towards me with her brown eyes sparkling. I squinted at her, not sure if I should take it as an insult or a compliment. When I didn't reply she chuckled nervously and looked around the class room. Almost every eye was on us and not the teacher. They were only reviewing the schedule for the week. There was an assembly today during third period. I looked back at her and she was staring at me again.

"How is it that you know me?" Her mouth slowly formed an "O".

"Oh! I'm sorry I thought you knew." She giggled, and I'm normally not the kind of guy who gives a shit about a girl's giggle, but hers gave me butterflies. "I'm your step-brother's girlfriend. I wasn't at the wedding, I had to visit my mom." Oh fuck me running.

O_O

I walked into the cafeteria intent on getting some grub, and getting the fuck out. However the monsoon raging outside said otherwise. I'm sure the library was in this building though. The food here looked a whole lot better than what we had back in Houston. I guessed that smaller schools meant better food. I grabbed the pepperoni pizza slice offered to me and a water bottle. Paying, I turned around and almost ran into the shortest girl I had ever seen. She was wearing black pants and a dark blue dress over it. The dress honestly looked a bit big on her.

"Hi! You're Edward's brother right?!" Her voice felt like nails on a chalkboard and it took all I had in me not to cringe and tell her to fuck off.

"Step-brother." It wasn't like I had anything against him, I just wanted absolutely nothing to do with his family. I liked Texas. The second I hit 18 I'm going back.

"Right. Why don't you come sit with us?" She looped her arm around one of mine and started tugging. I let go of the tray quickly to get her arm from around mine and grabbed the side of the tray again.

"No thanks, miss..." She beamed brightly at me,

"Alice Brandon."

"Right, Ms. Brandon. I..."

"Sorry Ali-cat, this man's lunch hour is taken!" Boomed the largest guy I had ever seen in my life. I was six three, but this guy still managed to tower over me. I think he could fit two of Alice in each of his thunderous thighs and four of me in his chest alone. He must be on the football team. What a waste if he wasn't.

"Hey, thanks." I said when we had gotten far enough away from the pouting black haired girl behind me.  
"Any friend of Belly-boo's is a friend of mine!" Does he have an indoor voice? I had a feeling this was just his thing. He said hi to a few people as we maneuvered around tables, finally stopping at a table near the wall of windows. The whole gang was there it seemed. Edward sat next to Bella, while she was turned towards Rosalie trying to get to know her. My sister was already giving her the ice queen glare. She looked up as me and the burly dude sat down across from her and gave me a smile.

"Jasper!" I sat on the other side of her and set down my tray fully preparing to decimate it. "Twin." I took a giant bite out of my food. I looked back up to see her brow furrowed. If there was anyone who Rosalie couldn't stand having mad at her, it was me and our mother Esme.

"Hi Jasper." Bella said from behind Rosalie. I didn't even bother giving her a second glance. What's the point when she was dating that stuck up little shit. Speaking of, he didn't even acknowledge me.

"So Jazz-man." Are you serious, Emmett? "Rosie here tells me you play guitar." I glanced at my twin sister and gave her a cheeky grin.

"Really, Rosie?" She hated when people called her anything but Rosalie. She turned her ice queen glare from Bella to me. Good, I didn't like her looking at Bella that way. Ugh my step-brother's girlfriend. Repeat it like a mantra Jasper. I don't even know why I was so interested in her anyway. So what if she had a gorgeous smile and knew who Bob Dylan and Van Morrison were.

"Oh! Jasper we should play together some time!" Bella said, leaning all the way around Rosalie and pushing her food tray forward to lean on the table to see me clearly.

"Sure, Bella." I continued eating my food and trying to ignore the conversation around me. She played guitar? Fuck. When I finished my food and looked up, I saw my dear ole step-staring at me. Well glaring would be more appropriate. He's such a little bitch. I gave him a steely glare back and he actually had the nerve to flinch away and turn his attention back to Emmett who had noticed the whole thing. I had a feeling that although Emmett seemed like the stereotypical dumb jock there was little that he missed when it came to his friends and family.

The bell rang and I groaned as I got up to take my tray to the trash. Everyone else besides me, Rosalie and Bella left theirs at the table. Well actually, Emmett carried Rosalie's for her. First day and she already has him wrapped around her little finger. Boy he sure didn't see her coming!

I headed off to the small room off of the gymnasium that hosted the dance class room. There were three doors, one from the gym, one from the coaches office and the last one was attached to the girls locker room. This was going to be so awkward. I hoped the teacher was susceptible to my charms. I had non plans on participating, they were all on transferring out. That was, until Bella Swan walked in dressed in tight black yoga pants and a form fitting black leotard.


	3. Fort Kickass

A/N: You guys, are awesome. This is the first time I've gotten such a positive response to something I've posted on here! I'm simply floored by it. Every time I get a new review or a follow/fave in my inbox I literally do a little dance and go open it to see what it says. This is for everyone who's reviewed so far, even though there wasn't much to review on before.

Fort Kickass

"Ah good, Isabella. I see you are taking this class more seriously this year." The petite woman announced entering the classroom with a flourishing sweep. She had obviously been dancing for years. You could see it in her movements. Every step was the beginning of a pirouette. It was like watching the flowing movements of a musical about to burst into song. Yeah, I had seen a few musicals in my day. My twin sister loved them and our mother Esme loved taking her to them. Of course you can't leave a boy home along so I went more often than not. It did nothing but encourage my musical tastes and strengthen my bonds with my family. That didn't mean I wanted any of these mother fuckers to know I knew more about Ballet than a 17 year old man should.

Bella blushed prettily, following the teacher into the room with her eyes. She strolled past me, and Bella's eyes widened. Now it was my turn to blush. There was no way I was wearing spandex and leaping around in pointe shoes. I could see her picturing it in her mind. There were ten girls, the teacher and me. I stood against the Barre at what I assumed would be the back of the room, but ended up being the front. The teacher reached me, and gave me a huge wide eyed smile.

"What do we have here? A ballarino in the making." I rolled my eyes. Fuck no, lady.

"I think I'm in this class by mistake." I explained. Bella just giggled and said something under her breath that sounded suspiciously like, "Yeah, right."

"Ah, no. I have a Jasper Whitlock." She said after spending a few seconds going over her roll chart. "That's you, no?" I nodded,

"I think you meant to have my sister, Rosalie Hale Whitlock instead." She shakes her head no,

"Non, there is no mistake. Jasper Whitlock is enrolled. No Rosalie." I was starting to think that maybe the French accent wasn't a put on for the sake of teaching a dance class. She looked me up and down. "You are no dancer though, what shall I do with you Mr. Whitlock?" I shrugged.

"I could transfer out." I suggested helpfully.

"Hey, don't you play an instrument, Jas?" Bella asked, coming to the front of the room to stand next to the teacher.

"Et tu, Brute?" I glared in her direction.

"Oui! You do Mr. Whitlock? Perhaps you can play music for us to dance to in the fall performance." She clapped her hands excitedly, latching onto the idea rather quickly. I continued to glare at Bella. She just smiled at me wide and full. Her mirth threatening to bubble over into laughter.

"He plays guitar." She added oh so helpfully. What did this chick have out for me? She should be mad at her boyfriend who I didn't even know had a girlfriend until today!

"Perfect! We could do something new and fresh!" The teacher exclaimed, her eyes going unfocused as she stared off into space.

"So Bella, what instrument was it that you played?" The teachers eyes snapped to Bella and she blushed from all of the attention.

"Two musicians? That would be even better! Then we wouldn't have to worry about you, would we, Isabella?" Worry about her? Bella just blushed harder.

"I play the guitar." She muttered almost under her breath. We heard her well enough though.

The rest of the period was the teacher, Mrs. Brandon, explaining how the class would work. Bella leaned over and told me that, that was Alice's mom. I remembered the short girl with black spiky hair and her enthusiasm. I could see it completely. We all sat on the floor while she spoke, walking through the room and giving every student attention. When she finished she walked back to the front of the room and demanded we all get up and do some stretches. She ran us through the same stuff we would do in a regular P.E. Class.

"Ah, Lauren! You have not been stretching over the summer, no?" She paused at her to help her with a stretch. I looked away. Some girls should not wear spandex. She said similar things to almost everyone in the class. When she got to me she looked me up and down,

"Mr. Whitlock, you're an athlete, aren't you?" I shrugged noncommittally. I had no plans on joining in any sports or extra curricular activities my senior year. Luckily my sister seemed to have gossiped to Bella all about me, which seemed strange considering she was mad dogging her all of lunch.

"He played baseball at his old school. He was a pitcher."

"Thanks, Bella." I gave her a really sarcastic smile and eye roll.

"No problem, Jas!" She beamed at me and fluttered her eye lashes. Luckily the five minute bell rang, as a signal to get out of our P.E. Clothes. I wasn't wearing any so I could just sit around doing nothing, until my next class. I already knew where my A.P. English was, clear across campus. Which would have been a hustle if it were at my old school. At least I wasn't expected to dress out for Dance class, if I even considered keeping it. Which I wasn't. When the bell rang to signal the end of fifth period, Bella came running out of the Gym to catch me.

"Hey Jas!" I wanted to dislike 'Jas', I really did. But it was exponentially better than Jazz-man. I hoped neither of them really catches on. Maybe it could be me and Bella's thing. I would have to think of a nickname for her too.

"Yes, Brutus? Oh thanks for throwing me under the bus by the way." I said over my shoulder, not even bothering to slow down for her to catch up to me. It wasn't like I was walking that fast anyway. More of a brisk little jaunt.

"Oh because you were going to put on tights and frolic around." She replied breathlessly when she caught up to me and matched my stride. I slowed down a little to give her a break, not that she deserved it. "Where's your next class?" She asked, looking down at my hands. "Where's your schedule?" I laughed.

"Do you think I'd really need a schedule for a school with 18 class rooms?" She shrugged, looking embarrassed.

"I did when I moved here." Ah, the plot thickens.

"You're not from Forks?" I asked as we rounded the last corner to AP English. I couldn't tell if I was leading her or if she was leading me.

"Naw... I mean I was born here. But I've lived in Phoenix, Arizona since I was five." We stopped at the AP English door. "This is my stop." She said, and I laughed again.

"This is my stop too." She smiled at me and pulled me into the classroom with her, snaking her way to the back seats. She glared at some poor girl until she got up and moved seats.

"There, now we can sit together." What a vindictive little thing. I couldn't wipe the smile off of my face.

"Do you miss it?" I asked after we sat down and pulled out our notebooks and pencils for the lesson, if there would be one. It was the first day after all. I liked that she was serious about school work. No one really was anymore. I wasn't really, I just wanted to get A's to make my mother happy. I was her oldest. By three minutes. I would never let Rosalie forget it though.

"Miss what, Phoenix? Yeah. Pretty much all the time, honestly. Just like I'm sure you miss Texas." She twirled her pencil between her fingers. We even used the same black Dixon pencils. I was obsessing like a girl. It needed to stop immediately.

"It's way too cold here, that's for sure. I don't mind the rain, I loved thunder storms in Texas. The cold rain though, has got to go." She giggled.

"I know, right?!" She agreed wholeheartedly. "I love being able to spend time with my dad, but I hope to god I get accepted at Texas A&M."

"That's where I had hoped to go this year. I actually don't need anymore credits to graduate. I just wanted to graduate with Ro... So here I am." Way to go, Whitlock. Let her know you're a complete nerd in addition to motorcycle riding bad ass. Oh wait, she wouldn't know that until my bike got shipped here. Esme was too frightened for me to let me ride it up from Texas.

"Really?" She turned and looked at me with wide eyes. We didn't get to say anymore because the teacher walked in and immediately assigned reading material and homework for tonight.

"My name is Mr. Banner. I expect you all to do your homework, reading assignments, and anything else I require you to do promptly." Wow, this guy sounded like a total asshole. "If you turn in an assignment late, it's an automatic fail. If you are late to the class, you don't get participation credits for that day." On and on he went with his militant rules. I'm so glad I didn't need to take this class. I planned on dropping it as soon as possible. I wanted a four class day so I could leave after lunch.

"Can you believe this guy?" I wrote on a piece of paper and aimed it at Bella. She glanced down and immediately hid herself behind her hair, her whole body shaking. After his long lecture on behavior he expected from this class he let us get a start on selecting reading material for the next day, and the homework assignment. Which was pretty much, read the first chapter, and write your thoughts down in no less than five paragraphs single spaced. The only thing that was nice about this, was that I would be able to read whatever book I wanted to. I had started reading 'The Collector' by John Fowles during the move. I figured I could feign having read it half way already and do all my work on that. I pulled the book out of my backpack and skimmed over the first chapter. It was still fresh in my memory, so I set the book down and started to write. Suddenly the book was off my table and I glanced up quickly to see Bella nosing through it. When she noticed me looking at her she shrugged.

"Mind if I do my work on this book too?" Was she just trying to invent excuses to talk to me now? Sure we got along great, but her magnanimous boyfriend would most likely mind. I shrugged,

"Sure. You'll probably be at the house a lot anyway." I wouldn't bother telling her I was halfway done, just so we'd have an excuse to keep trading the book. I didn't even bother asking why she didn't buy her own copy. It was too logical and I wanted nothing to do with it. "I'm not sure if you'd like it anyway." I added as an after thought.

"I'll never know until I read it. I think Mr. Banner would enjoy watching me read something I didn't like." She glanced up at the teacher and sure enough he was sending unhealthy amounts of hate towards this petite young woman next to me. I was a little surprised to see a teacher glare at a student like that. I was going to ask her what that was all about, but when I turned back to her she was already nose deep in 'The Collector'. By the time I finished writing my interpretation and thoughts on the first chapter, the bell rang.

"So any opinion yet?" I asked her as we packed up our things so we could get the hell out of here.

"Not really yet, no." She shrugged, handing me back the book. I pushed it back at her,

"How will you do your homework if I have the book?" She handed it back to me,

"I'll be at your house later I'm sure... And if I'm not, it's a good excuse to be." She grinned up at me through her dark lashes and I swear she was fucking with me on purpose. She strode out of the class room leaving me completely slack jawed. Of course, Edward was waiting for her, like the awesome boyfriend he wasn't. Man, why is shit so complicated?

O_O

When I arrived home, Edward's shiny silver Volvo was nowhere to be found. I tried not to imagine him and Bella necking in it on an off beaten path anywhere. Getting out of Rosalie's car I was pretty happy to see the moving trucks there. Ro, however was mad she had to park at the end of the gravel driveway, because they were in the way to the garage. She was more obsessive about her red BMW than she was about her manicured nails. We had spent the last three days sleeping in hotels, on our way up from Houston. We had arrived this morning around four am. Technically we had two days of hotels and one day of driving all night above the speed limit because we would get our asses chewed out if we missed the first day of school.

I sprinted up the back stairs to the bedrooms two at a time. I was excited to get all of my shit unpacked and resume my comfortable manner of living. Also known as not sleeping in gross hotels with my sister in the same room huffing over all my bad habits she secretly found endearing. I however, did not find her constant primping or reality T.V. watching to be endearing. At all. Carlisle and Edward lived in a three bedroom house, that could almost be a mansion. All three bedrooms had en-suite bathrooms. One bedroom was downstairs, and that was our parents. It felt weird to say that, but Carlisle was a good guy so I didn't really mind calling him my parent. Downstairs also had a half bath. The second story had two bedrooms and a full bathroom. That bathroom was mine, the bedrooms were Edward's and Rosalie's. I was the lucky mother fucker who got to live in the attic. I wasn't even being sarcastic, I swear. Carlisle had it pimped out. It was definitely bigger than the other bedrooms, it sprawled across the whole house. He had wanted to put in a bathroom for me, since he hadn't really planned on using it until he married Esme. I'm not a picky guy though, I don't mind climbing down a flight of stairs to use the bathroom, as much as my sister would have.

I opened the door to my room and climbed up those stairs more carefully. I took a breath before I peeked my head over the floor boards. Yes! Boxes! I leapt up the rest of the stairs and did a little dance. They were all against the far end of the wall, where I had wanted the bed. The slanted roof of the house made it the perfect spot in the room for the bed. I started moving the boxes to the side of the room so I could tell them to put my bed there. I had plans on just throwing it on the floor, since no one would care to look in the attic if we had company. Plus I had the awesome advantage of getting a lock on my door. I wonder if Carlisle had really given me my own place in the garage to play my music. I didn't see any of my instruments up here.

"Jasper, sweetie? Are you up there?" I heard Esme call up from the stairs.

"Yeah Mama, I'm here." I met her at the top of the stairs and gave her a big hug, swinging her around in a circle. She loved it when I did this. It reminded her of my father.

"So how do you like it? I know you didn't really get a good chance this morning before you took your nap on the couch before school." I'm surprised she knew about that. Then again, nothing escaped my mother if it was about her kids.

"I haven't really looked around, honestly. The second I got home I came up here." She proceeded to take me on a tour of the house, and spent way too much time gushing about the kitchen. I did agree it was a nicer kitchen than we had back home, but you can cook a good meal anywhere. I would know, my mother and I cooked together all the time. I hoped that wouldn't change now that she was married and we lived with other people. She walked us out to the backyard, which was huge and completely lined with the forest on all sides but the house, and garage side. She pointed out where she was going to plant a flower garden and a herb garden. Skipping the garage completely she pointed to the woods.

"Down that path, is where we were originally going to put you." She explained, her eyes twinkling with mischief.

"You were going to make me sleep in the woods?" I exclaimed pretending to be hurt. "But Ma, I thought you loved me!" She punched my shoulder playfully.

"You're ridiculous. Go look. I'll be in the house directing all the traffic with Rosalie." She turned away and left me at the back of the expansive yard staring into the forest. There was probably a maid cottage or something. I walked for a few minutes until I came across a clearing. Man, what a sick bachelor pad. I'm surprised Edward hadn't claimed this. It was a nice little stone cottage nestled next to what appeared to be a running brook. Across the stream was a large field filled with wild flowers. I don't mean to sound gay or nuthin, but that shit kicked ass! This had to be the spot Carlisle had put aside for me for my music. Opening the door, I wasn't disappointed. All my music stuff was strewn across the living room area. Amps here and there, guitars laying all over the place. Boxes stacked everywhere. It was practically full with just my music equipment. A quick tour showed me that there was a tiny bedroom, a tinier bathroom, and a small kitchen with a mini fridge. When I said small kitchen, I mean it had a sink, a microwave and a tiny fridge.

Shit is so cash.

I must have spent hours unpacking all of my things and rearranging everything how I liked it. Carlisle had a queen bed parked in the bedroom already made up with fresh linens. The bedspread was a dark brown and crème. My mother had to have something to do with designing my space out here. The living room had a dark brown suede couch with a matching chaise lounge. I always thought that all studios should have a chaise lounge. I remembered ranting about it to my mother once. Saying it was the perfect size for someone to lay down and play guitar on. I love that she remembered.

"Hello?" I heard someone call out. It didn't sound like Rosalie or Ma. I poked my head out of my studio, thinking vacantly about how I had to give it a sweet ass name, and saw Bella coming up the path through the woods. The sun was already starting to set.

"Hey, what are you doing in my neck of the woods." I laughed, "Get it. My neck of the woods!" Lamest joke ever, but I couldn't help laughing. She rolled her eyes at me.

"You missed dinner. Esme told me to bring some to you on my way home. Since I have to borrow that book for English." I swear she winked at me, but it could have been that the shadows were playing across her features.

"Aw man. I was totally in the zone rearranging my shit." I said, stepping aside and inviting her in. "You may enter Fort Kickass, Milady."

"You're a fucking dork. I like that about you, Whitlock." I have no idea why, but hearing her call me Whitlock did all kinds of things to my dick. "You know I had to fight off Edward to bring you your dinner. I told him I was going home immediately after, that's the only reason he relented. I don't think he even realized he drove me here." She walked straight to the kitchen and set the food down on the counter. I immediately scooped it up and took the plastic wrap off of the plate. Nothing like pizza and bread sticks to welcome one to their new home. It was still warm so I just ate it as is, plopping down on the chaise lounge.

"I don't even care that I had pizza for lunch." I said in between mouthfuls. "I am so hungry I could eat a steer." She sat down on the couch, after placing her messenger back and a back pack on the floor beside it. "Isn't that my back pack?" I said, completely demolishing the three pieces of pizza and several bread sticks. I think I had seen some cokes in the mini fridge. I put the plate in the sink and popped open the fridge. I was rewarded with several Cherry Pepsi's and Barq's root beer. Yeah, my Ma definitely had something to do with this.

"Want a drink?" I asked, not really sure if she was staying. She brought her shit for school so I figured she would hang out for a bit.

"Yeah, what ever is fine as long as it's not diet." She made a gagging noise. Only girl I ever met that didn't insist on diet coke. I took out two Cherries and handed one to her, sitting down next to her on the couch. "I liberated your back pack from your room. I hope you don't mind." I shrugged, I hadn't really thought about returning to the house.

"Honestly, I'm thinking about just moving in here." Bella laughed, popping open her coke.

"That's exactly what Rosalie and Esme said." She explained. I liked my privacy and they knew it.

"I wonder why they even bothered setting up the attic if they knew I'd want to be here. They put all my stuff up there, there's boxes galore. However my desk, bed and all of my recording equipment seem to be here."

"Yeah, Edward wasn't kidding when he said you played the guitar." I scowled at his name. Of course he wouldn't tell her exactly how well I played. He wanted to be the only musician in the family. He wants to go to Julliard. I did however sing a song for my mother at her wedding. I bet he didn't tell her that.

"It's pretty much my life." I admitted honestly.

"That's cool. I always wanted to be in a band. I'm just not good at guitar and my voice isn't well suited for anything but a grunge or punk band." She shrugged. "C'est la vie!"

"We could start one, you know." I suggested helpfully. "I mostly just record covers by myself and flirt with the idea of posting them online." Her eyes lit up.

"Who do you co..." Before she could finish there was a voice calling her name. Probably Edward. "Oh. Oh! Tell him I left already and said my dad was picking me up." She grabbed her bag and dove into the bedroom. Was she seriously hiding in my bedroom from her boyfriend? There was a knock on the door and I went to open it.

"Hey, have you seen Bella?" He asked, peering behind me into the living room. He seems mistrustful. I wondered idly if they had a controlling relationship.

"Yeah dude, she left like fifteen minutes ago. Said her dad was waiting for her." I shrugged. Good thing I was a Grade A liar. He sighed and ran a hand through his hair.

"I swear she never listens." With that he turned on his heel and walked back down the path. What a strange dude. I watched him walk for a minute until he disappeared into the woods. I shut the door and locked it behind me. Amused that it still had a wooden bar you could put down. I didn't bother with that though, I wasn't trying to keep out an ax murderer. I drew the black out curtains in the living room and kitchen in case anyone decided to spy on us later. I had a feeling Bella didn't want to be found at the moment.

"Hey, Doucheward is gone." I called out. I heard a giggle and the door swung open. She carried out her notebook and a pencil. "Were you doing homework in there, you little nerd?" She giggled again,

"Well, duh. I actually have homework on the first day. Unlike someone who already finished their homework." She plopped down on the chaise lounge on her stomach, with her feet hanging out in the air. Did she take of her boots?

"Just make yourself at home." I grinned sarcastically.

"I will, just as soon as you give me that book." I handed it to her and picked up my acoustic guitar. Taking my time restringing it and tuning it. We sat in silence, just enjoying each others company. She finished the book and started her paper. I got a text on my phone from Ro.

Ro: Your bike is in the garage. As far away from Ed's Volvo as I could manage. Your helmet is on the handlebars, mine is in the long cabinet next to it with our jackets. How are you enjoying Fort Kickass?

I chuckled. We really did know each other too well.

Jas: Thanks, Ro. Fort Kickass is awesome.

Ro: Anything else you might want to tell me, my dear twin?

I looked up at Bella who was scribbling away at her paper.

Jas: No, I don't think there is right now.

A/N: Haha, I went a little crazy there. Wrote way more than I intended to. I just wanted to have it more than 2,500 words. Hopefully the next chapter will be more eventful... ;) And not so damn long. Unless you want it long... Do you like long chapters!? Tell me!


	4. Left Alone

A/N: This isn't as long as I promised, but I hope it answers some questions and sets things up a bit better than the last chapter.

Left Alone

_How can I ask anyone to love me_

_When all I do is beg to be left alone_

There was something kind of dirty and hot about hanging out with my new step-brother's girlfriend unsupervised. She honestly didn't seem to like him very much. When ten pm rolled around she asked if I had a vehicle to take her home.

"Yeah, wait here though. It's loud and I don't want to wake anyone up." She looked at me funny but shrugged and said okay. I ran down the path to the house and to the garage. It was closer to the road, but further from the house and my cottage. I went in the side door and opened the garage door so the moon light could help me see my way. I collected the jackets and helmets, hoping Rosalie wouldn't mind if Bella borrowed hers. I walked it down the driveway, keeping an anxious eye on the house with every crunch of gravel. When I finally got down to the road I ran back to get Bella, edging through the trees to get to the cottage faster.

"Okay." I said, arriving breathlessly and throwing open the door. Scaring the absolute shit out of her.

"Jesus Christ, Jasper!" I shrugged sheepishly. How was I to know I'd make such an entrance?

"I parked at the bottom of the drive. Is there an easier way down there than skirting the entire house?" I asked, shutting off the lights and closing the door behind us.

"Yeah, actually." She said, hoisting her backpack on. She looked around for a few seconds, and then grabbed my hand. "It's this way I think." She led me over the creek, and around the meadow. Looking back and forth through the trees she sighed. "There's a path somewhere around here, it goes right down to the drive way."

"At least there's a full moon out." I commented dryly and joined her in trying to find the path. I found a wider than normal opening which looked to be an over grown trail. "Hey, I think this might be it." I called out quietly, still not sure how far sound could travel. I could hear her making her way towards me in the dark.

"Where are you?"

"I don't know, over here." I laughed when I heard her hmph at me. She was close enough apparently. If someone had told me that I would be lost in the woods my first night in Washington because of a girl, let alone my new step-brother's girlfriend, I would have laughed in their faces.

"There you are!" She tripped over something and I barely had time to catch her before she ate dirt. As it was her head landed smack in the middle of my chest. "Ow... You're about as hard as a rock." I chuckled. It wasn't like I was super muscular or anything. Edward must be all scrawny. It didn't bother me as much as it should have. Comparing myself to my step-brother like this. In terms of attractiveness. I didn't realize how tightly we were embraced until Bella pulled away a little bit to look up at me. The moonlight made her skin glow with blue hues, her eyes sparkling black pools. This chick was making me rhyme in my inner monologue. Her lips parted, as she caught her breath. I could tell if I were shorter she would have leaned in for a kiss. She completely negated my sense of morality. This was my new brother's girlfriend. Step away, Whitlock! I gently let go of her, and asked about the hiking trail.

"So is this it?" She immediately looked away towards the trail.

"Yeah, there should be a fork a bit down, the right one will lead us to the end of the drive way. Careful though, it's on the street side and people love speeding on back country roads. No matter how windy they are." She took off in the lead and I had to jog to catch up. She was walking briskly with her arms folded across her chest. I could tell she was angry. Surely it wasn't because I rebuffed her advances? I didn't want to call her out on it either, what if it was all a misunderstanding? Then I would just look like a giant creep. I hoped she was paying attention. I really didn't want to get lost in the woods. She paused and looked around before veering off to the right. I didn't want to ask how she knew the woods behind my house so well. It bothered me knowing she was with Edward. Especially after finding out just what kind of a guy he was.

"So, why were you hiding from Eddie Boy?" I asked, unable to contain my question any longer. It had been grating at me all evening. She barked out a laugh that seemed almost sarcastic.

"Shouldn't you been asking why I'm dating him instead of why I'm hiding from him?" She kept walking, talking over her shoulder.

"Both are valid questions to me." She was honestly starting to frustrate the living hell out of me. There are lots of things I don't condone, and one of them is cheating. Yet here I was, trying so hard not to throw caution to the wind and kiss this infuriating woman.

"It's kind of a long story, Jas." She sighed out dejectedly. Like it was some tragic story. We remained silent for the rest of the walk. I spent the silence thinking of thousands of reasons why she would stay with him when she didn't like him. The most immediate one was because the sex was good. The idea of that little shit being better in bed than me annoyed me. Then I thought maybe he was black mailing her. That one seemed like it had real possibilities. Maybe she was in it for the money? Or she wanted to be a trophy wife? Well that's pretty much the same thing as being in it for the money.

"And here we are." She said, stepping out of the woods and onto the road. Glancing around, she turned to me. "I thought you said you parked your car at the end of the drive way?" I grinned at her, all my anger at her indecisiveness dissipating. I went into the bushes behind the mail box and walked out my Harley-Davidson Softail. It had belonged to my father, and was one of my most prized possessions. It was extremely rare for me to let a girl on this bike. By extremely rare, I mean only my sister and mother have ever ridden on it with me.

"Wow." Was all Bella managed to say. I handed her Rosalie's jacket and she took off her backpack to put it on. I helped her with her helmet and asked her where her house was. She gave me really simple directions and I was off.

O_O

Bella

To say last night was surreal would be a bit of an understatement. I woke up that morning feeling revived and happy for the first time in a long time. That was, until I realized my boyfriend Edward would be here to pick me up for school in twenty minutes. I rushed through my morning routine, only pausing briefly in the shower to wonder what it would be like to ride behind Jasper on the way to school every morning. I wondered if he'd give me another ride some time. Of course, that led to thinking about me riding him and I ended up greeting Edward at the door with wet hair. I couldn't help it, something about Jasper Whitlock drove me absolutely crazy. I hated Edward even more that morning. I was silent the entire ride to school. Not that he minded, he proffered me quiet. 'Some things a lady should never say, Isabella.' Pah!

It was raining, it's always raining. Today however, I wish the sun would come out. I didn't want to catch a cold because Jas had distracted me in the shower. Getting out of Edward's Volvo I couldn't help thinking about what it would really be like if Jasper had distracted me in the shower. I completely spaced picturing him holding me up against the wall, hands on my hips, mouth on my neck. Oh boy. Edward was staring at me. I could feel my cheeks burning with my blush. Jasper Whitlock was a dangerous man to my psyche. Edward Cullen was altogether a different kind of dangerous to my person.

"You seem flushed. Are you getting sick, Isabella?" Edward asked, running his hand along my jaw. It took every bit of me not to flinch away from him. His eyes unfocused as he looked past me. I turned to see what he was looking at... Oh hell. Jas had arrived just in front of his sister's red BMW. You could see her scowl from here. I bet they raced all the way here. I'd have to tell him to be careful. The last thing I wanted was for my dad Charlie to dislike Jasper. He took his job as Chief of Police seriously. As well he should. Jas was wearing that leather jacket again, motorcycle boots, dark blue washed jeans, a tight white t-shirt and a smile that I swear was just for me. My heart was beating a mile a minute in my chest. Why couldn't he have lived here when I first moved to Forks? I wondered if I could tell him... Would he believe me? Trust me? Over his new family...? I decided then and there that I couldn't do that to him.

'I had to stay away from Jasper Whitlock.' Was my last conscious thought as I took a few steps towards where the Whitlock twins had parked their vehicles. I felt a firm restraining arm on my shoulder.

"Isabella, I want you to stay away from them." He said them, but I know he meant him. I narrowed my eyes at him. His eyes widened marginally. It was the first time in years I had outwardly disobeyed him.

"I don't think that's possible. We have classes together. Besides, I don't want to." I pulled my arm out of his and left him staring at my retreating form, shock marring his handsome features. I could see my bird cage being unlocked as Jas turned towards me, just having taken his helmet off and smoothing down his unruly curls. His face slowly unfurling his charming smile. Cerulean eyes sparkling when they reached mine. He called out so casually, as if he didn't know that my entire world was changing, my entire soul trembling with every step towards him.

"Hey, Bella."

The anxiety and fear slid away as I moved to stand beside him. I was struggling with my entire being not to glance back at Edward. Not to run to him and apologize, to beg for forgiveness. It all seemed so quick, so soon. I couldn't go back now, stop the changes that I had set into motion. That Jasper had set into motion by moving here. By smiling at me and making me realize I didn't have to anymore.

"Hey Jas." I smiled up at him, warming from the inside out as I held his eyes with my own. "Think you can give me a ride home?"


	5. Break Free

A/N: This was harder to write. Bella doesn't come easily to me as Jasper does. Also this took a really long time because there were some games that came out, and well... You know how life gets in the way :)

This is for KCLutz4475!

Bella

The longer I was away from Jasper, the more I felt the cold tremble of fear encircle my soul. The longer I went without the warmth of his presence, the more I grew to fear Edward's ultimate reaction when we were alone next. I had every class with Edward, until Dance and AP English. By third period I had resolved to skip fourth period and do homework in the library. I had considered hiding away during lunch too, but I had to see Jasper. Just thinking about being near him again eased some of the tension from my shoulders. I was on perpetual edge.

"Isabella, you aren't paying attention. The Civil War was an important time in American History." Edward whispered from beside me. I slumped in my seat. All the teacher was doing was reading straight from the text book anyway. I could read that later. My resolve was faltering with his continued presence. I decided that I would appeal to Mrs. Cope, about changing my schedule. I would tell her that me and Edward had a bad break up, and being around him was too distracting. I could tell her the truth, she wouldn't believe me. Nobody believed me the first time. Why would a second time be any different? My sigh of exasperation was droned out by the bell ringing. I got up as quick as I could to escape Edward's constant stream of questions. Not quick enough, however.

"I really don't see why you feel the need to embarrass me, Isabella." Always about him, always. Me, my, I'm. Never you, your, ours, or us. I left the classroom, walking swiftly through the hall towards the front office. I was going to ask Mrs. Cope now, it seemed best not to wait. I should have counted on him following me, though. Whenever he felt like I would betray his secret or was angry with him, he would follow me. Everywhere. I still remember the first time I had screamed at him, telling him to leave me alone, stop being such a creep and to go away... He showed up in my bedroom when I got out of the shower that night with his lists.

"This wont end the way you want it to, Isabella." He walked past me and stopped in front of me. "He isn't anything like what you need or deserve. He will only hurt you." Like you always have?

"It's Bella." I replied, side stepping him and practically running past a stunned Alice Brandon who had witnessed the entire ordeal. I couldn't worry about my former best friend now, I had to get my life in order. Stepping out from Edward Cullen's shadow was the first step.

O_O

Jasper

The day seemed to fly by. I spent the majority of my time half paying attention in class and thinking about Bella. Most of the stuff we were going to cover in the first semester were things I had already learned in Texas. I was in all AP classes for a reason, but for Math and History there were no AP courses in Forks. I would have to check out where the local college is and see if I could find a history course. By the time Lunch rolled around I was starving. For food and for good company. I couldn't tell you how many girls tried to get me to take them out on my bike.

I got my lunch and started heading towards the table we had sat at yesterday. I could already see Emmett and my sister sitting down. She looked bored, checking over her manicure and picking at her salad. Emmett was trying to chat her up, and I could tell she was into him. She wouldn't bother with looking bored if she wasn't, she'd just tell him to kick rocks. I sat down next to my twin and waited for Bella to arrive as I ate. Alice Brandon walked up and sat down next to me. I had a feeling this wasn't a table she would usually sit at. What with the entire cafeteria gawking at our table. She slid a note over to me, and waited expectantly for me to read it. I shrugged and unfolded it. She didn't seem like she wanted to talk in front of Rosalie and Emmett.

_She's not coming._

I turned back towards Alice and was about to ask if she meant Bella when she handed me a pencil and pointed at the note. Such secrecy. I wrote a B down. She grabbed the paper and wrote down Y next to my B. I tapped the Y again. She frowned and her brow furrowed. She wrote down a number and got up and walked away. Eyes around the cafeteria couldn't tell if they should follow her or look at me. Emmett leaned around Rosalie and asked,

"What was that all about? Alice doesn't really talk to a lot of people these days." That implied that he knew Alice. Yesterday Bella had called her a nickname. I wonder if she knew what was going on with Bella and Edward. I tucked the note into my pocket, feeling like Nancy Drew.

"She just wanted help with some assignment we have." The Bella rang before I could answer my Twin's accusing stare. I got up and dumped my trash, heading to the Gym. I still hadn't asked about transferring out, but perhaps the teacher would understand and let me go to the office to swap for a free period. I did get permission to go to the office and swap my class. Not before I promised that I would come up with some music for their fall performance even though I was going to drop the class. I didn't see Bella in class before I left.

I had assumed I wouldn't see her again in English, but she came running in just as the bell rang. The teacher lectured her about arriving late, but she just kept her head down and quickly walked to her seat next to mine. I couldn't see around her shield of hair. Something seemed off. Granted, I had only known her for one day, but she didn't seem herself. We didn't have a lot of time to talk but I had a feeling that if we had, she still would have remained silent. As class was getting ready for the final bell that would release us from all learning obligations for the day, I asked her if she still needed a ride home. She looked up at me guiltily. I knew she was going to say no.

"I've been looking forward to it all day." I added, hoping it would solve her inner conflict. I could see the gears turning in her mind, just behind her softening brown eyes. The bell was going to ring in a few minutes, and I knew she was checking the time.

"Yes, but lets go now!" She grabbed my hand and we raced from the classroom, making the majority of the way to the parking lot as the bell rang and everyone started hustling out the door. We were at my bike before the first students started hitting the lot. I handed her my helmet and put on my sunglasses before I got on and started the bike. We drove past an amused Emmett, an annoyed Rosalie and an absolutely seething Edward. I could feel Bella's arms around me tighten as we hit the road. I wasn't sure where we were going though, if her aim was avoiding Edward. I headed back towards my place anyway. We could just bar the door and play music. I revved up and went even faster as I navigated the twists and turns of Forks. I was looking forward to the solitude I was sure I would find that afternoon.

This Chapter was brought to you by The Black Keys. (Not literally, however.)


	6. Fucking Mess

A/N: Hiiiiii guys! I know I was gone for a long time. It wasn't like I had abandoned this fanfic or anything, I just didn't know what to write. Soon, there will be my first attempt at a lemon. Please be gentle with me when that happens! Also, please keep reviewing! Not only do your reviews give me an ego boost but they make me super happy. And you know, they encourage me to update sooner, lol.

Jasper

When we arrived back at Fort Kickass, I walked my bike into the trail and left it under the awning behind the cottage. It would be safe from the rain there. We settled down inside, after we had shed our wet outer clothes. I waited, but Bella just fidgeted nervously. Looking anywhere but at me. I couldn't handle the silence anymore.

"Tell me I'm not crazy for being attracted to you. Tell me that I'm not imagining this connection we have. Tell me that I don't sound like a fucking whiny girl!" She looked up at me with watery eyes. Taking off her glasses and rubbing her eyes, she spoke.

"Edward has a hold on me." She said quietly. What could he possibly have on her that would make her do... what exactly?

"Is that why you're his girlfriend?" I asked the most obvious question. I didn't want to know the answer to any of the other ones that were sliding through my head. She nodded, wiping her eyes again and putting her glasses back on. I wanted to ask if he made her do anything... sexual. I couldn't bring myself to embarrass her like that, however.

"We don't have long, he'll be here to get me soon." She spoke, this time her voice not wavering and seeming stronger. "When I first got here, I reconnected with my best friends from when I was a little girl, Alice and Jacob. Edward knows something, something that will tear my family apart. He told me that if I didn't accept his proposal to be his girlfriend, then he would tell everyone. I can't let him do that to Charlie, Jasper." She looked at me with sad, determined eyes. It was then we heard him. I grabbed my backpack and took out a notebook and tossed Bella 'The Collector'. She smiled at my gratefully, and leaned back on the chaise lounge and pretended like she was reading. I managed to turn on the radio to a random classical station and turned it up a little bit and jumped on the couch and pretended to be doing homework. Just in time, too. Edward came barreling through the door, his green eyes bright like Greek fire.

"What the hell was that, Isabella?" We both jumped when the door hit the wall.

"Damn, what the hell was that, Ed? You could knock next time, you know." Cool as a cucumber. If he heard me he didn't acknowledge it. What a bitch. Bella just stared at Edward with a pretty believable look of confusion on her face.

"What are you talking about?" She asked, her voice wavering a little.

"Your idiotic display after school! Do you realize you've already started the rumor mill? What were you thinking? This is not what we agreed upon!" With each sentence he got closer and closer to her, to the point where he was practically yelling in her face. She flinched away from him and averted her eyes.

Man, he was getting the wood floors all muddy.

"What agreement, Eddie?" I asked, standing up from my seat. I had a good four or five inches on him. Especially since he was wearing Prada loafers. Which were now covered in mud and probably ruined. I almost pulled out my phone right then and told Ro all about it. We had had a sneaking suspicion that Edward was gay. Until we saw him with our cousin Tanya. Which is why it was a shock to find out he had a girlfriend back home in rainy Forks. He turned towards me, and I could see the wind falling from his sails. He really hadn't heard me earlier. He narrowed his eyes. Oh great, was he going to yell at me now?

"This doesn't concern you Jasper, and I'll thank you to stay away from my girlfriend in the future." The way he said girlfriend reminded me of when he talked about his Volvo. I was starting to see that my new Step-Brother was greatly into possessions.

"I don't know how that's going to be possible." I said, folding my arms and daring him to continue with his childish antics.

"And just why is that, Jasper?" He tried to stand up straighter, clearly trying to imitate Carlisle. I've seen him do that same pose when talking to patients. "I don't see how Isabella is any of your concern, and if I want to keep her from my womanizing Step-Brother, I believe I have every right." I'm the womanizer? I tried not to laugh in his face then and there.

"Two reasons. We are putting together music for the Autumn Arts Festival, which is going to be the basis of Bella's grade for Dance. And then there's this little other thing..." I brought my fingers to my mouth, pretending to absentmindedly tap on my lips.

"What other inane reason could you possibly..." Edward started, but I cut him off.

"Tanya Denali."

Watching the emotions change on Edward's face was almost comical. He didn't think I knew about that. I couldn't stop the shit eating grin that spread across my face. He knew he'd be fucked if I told on him. I had two months worth of shit to drop at his feet at any given notice. I wondered if my stockpile of shit was anything like what he was holding over Bella's head.

"Who?" Bella asked, standing up and pulling on Edward's sleeve to make him look at her. He did, but very briefly before returning his glare at me.

"Nothing." He replied, effectively dismissing Bella's question. "You wouldn't dare." He said, pointing a finger at me.

"Wouldn't you?" I knew I had him, since he would have dropped the dime on me in a moment.

"What do you want?" He asked, pinching the bridge of his nose between his fingers. What did I want? I could think of a few things, but who's to say he would hold his end of the bargain.

"I don't know yet, I'll have to let you know." Edward should never play poker, just judging from his reaction. Several emotions fluttered across his face. Surprise, suspicion, anger, and resolve.

"Fine. But if you two are going to be working on a project together, I don't see why it can't be at the house. I will expect to see you there shortly." And with that he stalked off towards the big house, sulking the whole way.

"What a dick, he didn't even shut the door." I said, walking over to the door and shutting it. Luckily the floor wasn't wet, it was just incredibly cold inside now. I'd have to buy a space heater or two next time I was in town. By the time I turned around Bella had sat back down with her hand to her chest.

"My god, that was stressful." She said, looking up at me when I sat down next to her. "Who's Tanya?" I shrugged,

"What does Edward have over you?" She shook her head sadly.

"It's not my secret to tell, Jasper." What the hell was that supposed to mean? I was still contemplating what she meant when she grabbed her stuff and headed towards the door. "I'll see you later, okay?" I just nodded, as she opened the door and left. I had no idea my life would get this fucked up when my mother remarried. I was happy for her, I liked Carlisle. I even hadn't minded Edward. At least not until the last few weeks when that casual acceptance of each others existence turned into me and Ro's barely able to tolerate the guy.

I felt frustrated. I only knew Bella for a day before I was willing to agitate my new Step family by... What is it I'm even trying to do here? Ugh, I needed to talk to my sister. She was always able to help me work through shit. Unfortunately for me, she was off being a social butterfly. I wouldn't be surprised if she made Emmett suffer for another week before she gave him the time of day. She doesn't have me fooled though. I thought back to how she had been making googly eyes at him when he wasn't looking during lunch. That made me think of Alice stopping by and being confusing as hell. I dug the piece of paper she had written on out of my pocket and unfolded it. I toyed with the idea of calling her for a few minutes. The very second I had made a decision, someone banged on my door.

O_O

I paused for a minute, wondering who it could be before I opened up. Gliding in came Alice Brandon.

"Are you serious?" I asked as she started unraveling her winter clothes and kicked off her boots. "By all means, make yourself at home."

"I was waiting for Bella to leave so we could begin." She plopped down on the chaise lounge that Bella had just been sitting on. I raised my eyebrow and crossed my arms in front of me. Begin what, I wondered. I leaned against the closed door and waited while she settled herself.

"Alright. Where should we begin?" She clasped her hands together excitedly. Her blue eyes sparkling and her black hair bouncing along with her. I had never met anyone as exuberant as Alice Brandon.

"I suppose you could start with what crazy bullshit I got myself into." I decided to put it as bluntly as possible. Alice didn't seem like the kind of girl who liked to skirt around the issue, and preferred to get right down to business.

"I take it you don't know anything?" I shook my head. "Like nothing?" I sighed and ran my hand through my blonde curls.

"I know that Bella doesn't want to be with Edward." Alice rolled her eyes at me,

"Well duh, pretty much everyone who has two eyes in their face can see that plain as day." She scoffed. "You've only been here for a few days though, so I'm surprised you've managed to gather this much." I just shrugged, not sure if I should be insulted or take it as a compliment.

"Yeah, so? What have you gathered in your extensive time in Forks?" I felt no shame in giving her a bit of snark back. She laughed and leaned forward to rest her head in her hands and her elbows on her knees.

"Bella and I had always been close when we were younger. When she moved to Phoenix with her mom, we kept in touch. We saw each other every time she visited Forks. We wrote each other, then exchanged emails and talked on AIM all of the time. When she said she was moving back, I was ecstatic. I couldn't tell you who was happier, Charlie or me. It's only been a year since she moved back and so much has changed." Her eyes held a glazed over look as she remembered the past.

"When Bella came back, we were inseparable. We had sleep overs, we went on drives to Port Angeles and Seattle to go shopping, even though she thought it was boring. We did everything together. Shared everything together. To this day, I still don't think Edward knows that I knew everything. Had known everything since the beginning. There wasn't a note, email or Instant Message he sent her that I haven't also read. So when she started getting notes in her locker from the strange kid in school, she would share them with me. When they started getting progressively worse I always told her to tell Charlie, that it was bordering on obsessive... But one day she just stopped everything. Stopped talking to me, stopped hanging out with me during school, sitting next to me at lunch, everything. It's as if I no longer existed to her. She started sitting next to Edward at lunch, she was no longer friends with anyone else either. He only lets her talk to Emmett." She gave me awhile to process this information. I was more sure than I was before that he was holding something over her head. Something big.


	7. Strange Times

A/N: I hope you like where I'm going with this. It's not entirely where I had meant to, but I still dig it. This also took longer than I had wanted it to take. I'm sorry about that! I hope you forgive me and enjoy!

Strange Times

I laid back on my bed in the attic. I wasn't allowed to sleep in my cottage on school nights. It was Carlisle's first act as my Step-Father. He had started to ask if he was over stepping his boundaries, after he had requested that I not sleep in the cottage on school nights. I had interrupted him and told him that it was cool, I totally understood and it wasn't a big deal. Mama added that I had to be back in by 9pm. It had been kind of a weird end to my day. I hadn't expected Alice Brandon to show up and dump out the contents of her soul, just so she could put it out on display for me. She was a total trip. She was just such a bright and vibrant person, I couldn't help liking her. I had to wonder if everything was true, though. It all seemed a little crazy and far fetched. Like something out of a daytime soap opera, or a bodice ripper. I wish I had thought to ask Rosalie if anyone she met yet smoked. I thought Bella might, but with the way Edward acts around her I'm sure he wouldn't let her.

O_O

I had tossed and turned all night. When I woke up my shoulder was stiff and my hair was a literal rat's nest. I looked at the clock and realized I had 15 minutes to get to school before I would be late. I wondered why Rosalie hadn't woken me up. I yanked on my Doc Martin's and threw a random t-shirt over my black Henley. Not even bothering with the laces, I grabbed my keys and ran downstairs, through the kitchen and out to the front door. Where my sister Rosalie was waiting for me.

"What the fuck Rose? You couldn't wake me up?" She just shrugged, opening the door and handing me a granola bar. How irritatingly thoughtful of her. I shrugged on my coat as she led me to her car. I noticed it was already idling and warm. I shrugged and got in next to her.

"So brother, we haven't really spoken much since we moved." Oh great. The sisterly routine. I don't know why she bothered trying to act coy with me, it never worked. I swear being twins didn't let that shit fly for a second.

"What do you want to know, Ro?" I shrugged again, "You know we tell each other everything, when we are ready to." I added that last bit not so subtly to tell her to mind her own business. She glanced over at me as we finally descended the driveway, stopping just before hitting the main road. I looked away from her and out the window. Staring at the exact spot I had stood with Bella when I took her home that first night. A smile threatened to tug at my lips but I tried to remain as neutral as I could to avoid my sister's suspicions.

"Jasper, we aren't going to school today." I whipped my head back around to look at her, but she had already turned back to look out for traffic.

"You really think skipping is going to make Mom happy, when she's trying to make a good impression in this town?" She shrugged, as she pulled out on the road heading out of Forks as opposed to Forks.

"She's just going to have to understand." Ro said simply. I understood completely. Sometimes we just had to have time to spend just by ourselves. When one is in turmoil the other feels like shit until it's resolved. When we were in the fifth grade my mom thought she would put us in separate classes, to encourage us to be individuals and not have to rely on the other so much. Rosalie had heard some girls picking on me, and she walked right out of her classroom and clocked the both of their heads together. It wasn't the first time one of us hurt someone who had been attacking the other. I still remember Rosalie's 9th grade boyfriend, Royce. I especially remember having to move afterward, and Rosalie blaming it all on me. I knew I wasn't the one she was really mad at. She was secretly glad to get away after what he had done to her.

I reached over and squeezed her hand as it rested on the shifter. She smiled but didn't avert her eyes from the road. I plugged my iPod into her car stereo and turned on some tunes. Strange Times by The Black Keys starts playing through the speakers and I know she's only humoring me when she doesn't immediately turn it off. We spent the rest of the car ride in silence, just enjoying the drive and music. Well, in my case the music. I didn't even ask where we were going, or acknowledged the strange sensation in my chest the further we got from Forks...

Bella

I had decided to leave for school early, hoping to escape Edward. Unfortunately he must have guessed I was going to do that. He was currently parked at the end of my driveway, blocking my exit. Sighing, I locked the front door behind me and walked towards my truck. I've hardly been able to drive it lately with Edward chauffeuring me around everywhere. Never mind if I wanted to go somewhere or do something by myself. It was almost enough to make me spill everything. It wasn't just my life though, and I could suffer for a bit longer for my Dad. I just needed to find out the truth, so I could tell him myself. I slid my Ray-Bans over my eyes and pointedly turned away from Edward as I saw him exit his mom mobile. Yanking open my old truck's door, I threw my back pack inside and hopped in. Slamming the door shut behind me. Edward had made it up to my car door by then.

"Isabella." I sigh, and turn towards him. I gesture for him to go on, not bothering to roll down the window. "What is your interest in Jasper?" I hadn't expected him to blurt it out like that. Or be that straight forward. Edward was always a game player. I could only assume that this wouldn't be any different. I guess I didn't answer quick enough because he continued, "I don't want you to embarrass me by throwing yourself at my Step-Brother." I gaped at him. I didn't exactly think I had been throwing myself at Jasper. Sure, I liked him. I liked Jasper a lot. There was just this inexplicable pull to him that was hard to resist. But throwing myself at him? I raised my eyebrow at Edward. He furrowed his brows and gave me a weird look. "After finding out what a whore your mother is, and how unfaithful your father was, do you really think I wouldn't expect it to be hereditary?" He sneered. Well, fuck this. I started my car and stared right at him.

"You might want to move you car, before I move it for you." I spit out between my teeth. He must not have taken me seriously, because he didn't move at all. I turned around in my seat and glanced behind me. Shifting into reverse, I looked at Edward one last time, revving the engine. He looked at me incredulously. Not believing I would dare. I slowly released the clutch and slammed my foot on the gas, backing up quickly I smashed through the front end of the Volvo, sending it into the street. And out of my way! I laughed at the stunned expression Edward had, as he stood immobile with shock in my yard. I finished backing up and drove the opposite way of the school. Fuck that, I didn't want to deal with the results of my actions. Not today. I was going to Port Angeles, and I was going to indulge in some retail therapy.


End file.
